* HR - Recruitment

It has been widely reported that there is a “war on talent”, that organisations are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit and in some cases to retain good staff. Nationally, roles that require specialist skills are even more difficult to recruit. The strategic challenges within the education sector have been widely publicised. It has been reported that there aren’t enough teachers of good quality, there are shortages with maths and physics teachers, it is increasingly difficult to recruit for headteacher posts, and teaching posts within primary schools are notoriously hard to fill. The climate is particularly tough in London and the South East, and the Home Counties need to compete with the higher levels of pay in London.

Saturday 6 February 2016 saw Croydon schools host its first Teacher Recruitment Fair. The recruitment fair was the culmination of months of work by the CHTA and Octavo and was organised to address the increasing shortage of high quality teachers entering the profession, and to proactively support Croydon schools with their current recruitment challenges.

The recruitment fair was supported by a national and regional advertising campaign, developed to attract current, past and new teachers, or anyone interested in becoming a teacher. The advertising ran over an eight-week period and comprised press adverts in The Guardian plus local papers across Croydon, Epsom, Sutton, Kingston, Wandworth and Bromley. In addition, online banner adverts ran across a range of teaching and recruitment websites. Octavo also promoted the event through children’s centres, libraries, Croydon Council offices and in schools across Croydon. The fair took place between 10am and 1pm at Fairfield Halls and it was clear that the event was of value from both attendees and exhibitors:

"I had a wonderful morning at the Recruitment Fair a few weeks ago, and learnt a great deal about the fantastic and innovative work going on in education in my home town. Thank you for organising that opportunity for me, and others in my position, to get a flavour of teaching in Croydon. I am excited to start my teaching career in such a diverse and supportive borough.”

(comments from an attendee).

Feedback from the schools that exhibited has been really positive and plans are already underway for a second recruitment fair in 2017.

“We were delighted to be involved in this positive and worthwhile event. Could we please be included next year?”

(comment from a school).